Turning down the volume...of food. Finding my eating Zen.

I discussed a few weeks ago how, in my opinion, at some point calories do count for something. As I was sitting down last night in a local steakhouse and choosing a nice 10 oz. ribeye (rare with steamed broccoli and salad....yum) - I thought about how far I have come from my pre-change state. It was actually  pretty powerful to think about what and how I used to eat versus what I currently had on my plate.

Not just at a steakhouse - but at any restaurant I was always concerned with how much (volume wise) I could get, always worried about feeling full, and always had an insatiable appetite. For example in this steakhouse the typical meal used to always include a starchy appetizer just for me (nachos/loaded fires), the biggest steak 18oz+, two sides usually processed/starchy (mac and cheese/fries), and then a nice sweet desert. So roughly three full size plates of food altogether - without even looking at the macro levels of carbs/proteins/fats it was a holy cow thought!

Results Oriented: -167.8 Pounds, +2 Pull-ups, -9 Pants Sizes, and- 3 Shirt Sizes

New weight as of 6:30am this morning is 247.2 for a total loss of 167.8 pounds so far.

So about 5 pounds or so in the last month which is slightly slower than the previous, but that month included a week long vacation with luxurious heapings of primal food and a wedding where I had quite the good time and numerous servings of lovely red wine.

It's an amazing number as it seems I have lost about what an average person weighs. I haven't weighted anywhere near this since I was dating my wife so at least 10 years if not 11. I have gone from approaching a quarter ton to less than an eighth of one :)

And oh by the way since I am so proud of it - I am going to mention again that I can now do exactly two pull-ups at that weight!

And oh one more thing since I am proud of this as well I have gone from 56 pant size to a very loose 38 - that is 9 pants sizes.

And one last thing I have also gone from 4XL shirts to XL that's 3 shirt sizes.

Posted this the other day, but here it is for good measure:

Highest Weight to Current 9/2010

Here is my updated weight chart:

So for all those who are afraid less carbs and some IF will make you shrivel and waste away - I am gaining strength and maintaining muscle mass while losing inches and fat!

Paleo/Primal, and Lowcarb saving my life one day at a time.

Previewing this it seems a little like bragging. Did I post all these new stats to brag? A little - but mostly to say to those out there depressed and trapped that there is hope and you can do it too. Just get started with little steps.

-LL

Back from Vacation and Into a Fast

Back from vacation and busy catching up with work and the yard work, etc...as well as full primal mode.

I typically fast a couple times per week on an Alternate Day Fasting (ADF) type schedule (24-36 hours on/24-36 hours off) which for me has been the capstone to my primal transition. While on vacation with all of the nice fresh seafood and some awesome steaks - I ate the typical three a day (all pretty much primal) and by the end of the week I felt rather sluggish and slightly bloated which reminded me of why I love both ADF and Intermittent Fasting (IF).

They allow for the body to have some down time periodically to take a break from the work of digesting food and crank up some of the built in survival mechanisms in the body including increased immune function and GH release. I never realized before how the constant stuffing of my digestive system really dragged on my energy levels. After a decent 24 hour break from eating everything is empty and cranked up to efficiently receive the next round of food.